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The Concrete Blonde (Harry Bosch #3)

by Michael Connelly (Goodreads Author)

4.0 of 5 stars 4.00 · rating details · 14,678 ratings · 647 reviews

In this classic from a #1 "New York Times" bestselling author, Detective Harry Bosch thought he'd stopped the serial killer known as the Dollmaker. Now the dead man's widow is suing Harry and the LAPD for shooting the wrong man--an accusation that rings true when a new victim is discovered with the Dollmaker's macabre signature.

Paperback, 484 pages

Published February 1st 2007 by Grand Central Publishing (first published 1994)

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Jul 05, 2011 Velvetink rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: crime-fiction, 2011-read

3 and half stars.
Ok this is only the 2nd Connelly book I've read (the first being "The Poet") but beginning to see a pattern here. Towards the end you are geared up to one suspect being the killer but then bang no wrong guy, it's another and again no wrong guy it's really this guy. Kind of unsatisfying because in the end there isn't a real analysis of the actual killer. Fast read though if you want to veg out of your own life for a while & be a super sleuth for one night. Bosch seemed like a...more

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Dec 04, 2008 Theweebarrell rated it 5 of 5 stars

This is the third book in the series and had read the first two but i think i enjoyed this more than them. Michael Connelly was a new author to me but one i will continue reading as his books get better and better . Reall enjoyed this and would recommend it.

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Oct 25, 2008 Brooke rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2008, mystery

In Harry Bosch's third outing, we finally get to learn more about the infamous case that resulted in Bosch's demotion to the Hollywood homicide unit. The Concrete Blonde is more of a legal thriller than a police procedural as the plot revolves around the widow of the serial killer shot by Bosch suing the LAPD. A wrench is thrown into Bosch's defense when more corpses matching the serial killer's MO pop up.

I enjoyed this book more than the first two in the series, although it still hasn't inched...more

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Nov 23, 2008 Bill Kerwin rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: detective-mystery

I'm not a big fan of novels about serial killers with distinctive M.O.'s who leave clues in notes sent to the lead detective, particularly when the supposed murderer has already been incarcerated or killed, and the possibility of a copycat--or an original injustice--emerges. Been there. Done that. Squared. But Connelly's novel is so well-plotted and so well-written and features such believable characters and such realistic glimpses into the police detective's world that I was completely won over...more

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Apr 20, 2010 Joyce Lagow rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: mystery

The 3rd in the Harry Bosch series.[return][return]The book opens with a scene in which Bosch guns down a suspect who is reaching underneath a pillow after having been repeatedly told to freeze. It turns out that what is under the pillow is actually a toupee and not a gun, but Bosch feels no remorse because he is certain that Norman Church was the Dollmaker, a brutal serial killer. Evidence in the apartment in which Church died links him definitely with 9 of the 11 murders credited to the Dollmak...more The 3rd in the Harry Bosch series.[return][return]The book opens with a scene in which Bosch guns down a suspect who is reaching underneath a pillow after having been repeatedly told to freeze. It turns out that what is under the pillow is actually a toupee and not a gun, but Bosch feels no remorse because he is certain that Norman Church was the Dollmaker, a brutal serial killer. Evidence in the apartment in which Church died links him definitely with 9 of the 11 murders credited to the Dollmaker.[return][return]Four years later, Bosch is standing trial in a civil suit brought by Church's widow for wrongful death. The attorney is Honey Chandler, a high-powered lawyer with a gift for the jugular. While Bosch and the rest of LAPD is convinced that Church was indeed the Dollmaker, Chandler raises disturbing questions and shows herself to be a brilliant courtroom operator.[return][return]In the meantime, a note in a style all too familiar shows up on Bosch's desk, leading to the discovery of the body of a young woman whose physical appearance and manner of death fit the MO of the Dollmaker. His lawyer unable to prevent this damaging information which implies that the Dollmaker is still alive from being introduced into court, Chandler introduces other evidence that proves that Church could not have been the killer of the last victim.[return][return]Still convinced that he killed the right man, Sharpe investigates the latest murder. Baffled by the eerie similarities between this latest victim and those of the Dollmaker, Bosch travels down one blind alley after another in a relentless and desperate search until at last he finds the thread that leads him to the killer. The denoument is brilliant.[return][return]The third in the series, The Concrete Blonde is the best so far. The writing is taut, the characters and plot utterly believable, which means that the book is engrossing from the first page.[return][return]A page turner from beginning to end. Highly recommended.(less)

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Apr 10, 2013 JS Found rated it 4 of 5 stars

If you like this sort of thing, this is good. If you don't, you might change your mind about the genre. I don't usually read it because of the conventions and tropes always involved. There's always an obsessed cop with a poor private life--because the job is his life, dammit!--and an intricate serial killer with a flourishing nickname who taunts the cop with communication. All of that is in here too, but the dense and nicely plotted story, a couple of the characterizations, and the comments abou...more If you like this sort of thing, this is good. If you don't, you might change your mind about the genre. I don't usually read it because of the conventions and tropes always involved. There's always an obsessed cop with a poor private life--because the job is his life, dammit!--and an intricate serial killer with a flourishing nickname who taunts the cop with communication. All of that is in here too, but the dense and nicely plotted story, a couple of the characterizations, and the comments about the city make up for it. Plus, you can't put the book down once you start.

We are in 1994 right after the L.A. Riots. There is another case of police brutality on trial here, but the twist is, that it happens to our hero and we see in a prologue that it is unnecessary. Harry Bosch's kill was good. But he's being tried for excessive force and the killing of the wrong man. He thought he was gunning down a serial killer. But the victim's wife and her hotshot power defense attorney think he got an innocent man. At the same time, he is called in to a body--the concrete blonde-- a dead woman buried in concrete, killed the exact same way as the killer Bosch shot used to do. What's going on? Did Bosch kill the wrong man or is there a copycat?

Connelly was a reporter before turning to fiction. I would like to think that the scenes of the trial that wind themselves throughout the novel are true. If so, then a trial is a high stakes chess game where every move, every statement is not accidental but planned, designed to influence the twelve jurors who are being manipulated by the lawyers. The author makes the old but still important point that a trial is not a search for the truth but a contest of who can win. It's a tale of two narratives and the one that is the most compelling--not the most truthful based on evidence--wins and people's lives are decided by the presentations of the lawyers, not their guilt or innocence. The justice system, Connelly points out, isn't really about justice.

In fact, more than that institution has fallen. The city has fallen. It's become a sprawled out, economically stratified crime wave. Violence in the poor areas is the norm, taking good people who would have escaped their lot. The rich areas are gated. People from both classes don't interact, except when they have to. Then there are the really poor. For example, young women who come to this town to fulfill their dream of acting but go into the degenerate lower echelons of the porn industry. They become hookers and druggies. (I don't know anything about the porn industry, but this book doesn't present it in a good light. Hopefully by now, it's gotten cleaner, safer and the girls aren't abuse victims but normal women who like sex and money.)

So the city is ripe for the noir comments and situations the author lays out. I understand this is Bosch's third book. That's good because he's kind of a dry noodle. Perhaps he was explored more fully in the first two books. In this one, we don't know anything about him except that he's been damaged in the past and that the job is his life. He's a good and intelligent cop. Two other characterizations make up for his. One is the defense attorney going after Bosch. She's highly smart and uses her gender and the sexism found in cops and lawyers to her advantage. I couldn't quite read whether her main motivation was the cause, money, fame, or all three. But if they ever make the movie, this is a juicy role for one celebrity. The other interesting characterization is another cop. He's been working Vice which includes checking up on the porn industry (I don't know if that is still included in Vice nowadays. Again, a very bleak picture of the porn industry.) The nature of his job requires him to constantly watch adult videos and know the girls, and he becomes depressed and acts a little strange. But he is not all that he appears. For the murder mystery, a good many characters aren't who they appear.

This book was good to read as a break between the more literary and serious stuff that I usually consume. I won't jump out and read everyone of the Bosch novels, but I will check them out at points in the future.(less)

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Mar 15, 2013 Ellen (Elf TajMuttHall) Finch rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: thriller

I listened to this book on CD, and I wanted to keep driving around to hear more more more. On CD, it does seem to go on forever when you get to listen in only small increments, so I can see why some editions might be abridged for audio. BUT it wasn't because it lagged or dragged, but because I wanted to know how it all resolved.

This started slowly, with us sitting in a courtroom where a police detective (Bosch) faces a civil suit from the widow of a man whom he had killed several years earlier b...more

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Dec 01, 2012 Harry rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: detective-mystery, favorites

Time saver tip: if you've read my review of any Harry Bosch book, you've read 'em all. Since I don't reveal plots and reserve my comments to the overall book/author, characterization, style, etc...I just don't feel the need to repeat myself as in most cases series books if any good at all do remain consistent. The star ratings might change, but not my opinion of the series as a whole.

Michael Connelly is a well know and very popular author in the mystery/detective and police procedural genres. E...more

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Nov 11, 2012 Dlora rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: adventure-action, legal-thriller

The plot got my adrenalin pumping by the end of the book. This Connelly novel is a combination of legal thriller and a cop procedural/suspense action novel--both interesting and well written. Harry Bosch is on trial for excessive force in the shooting of the Dollmaker, a serial killer, although the excellent prosecution casts doubt about the victim really being the Dollmaker. Then during the court room battle, another Dollmaker-type victim is discovered, and Harry has to split his mandated appea...more

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Oct 31, 2012 Durdles rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: crime

I too, am now trying to read this series in order - this being #3. The title of the book is intriguing and refers to the LAPD's name for a murder victim whose appearance dents Harry Bosch's certainty that he had rid the world of a serial killer. Other concrete blondes appearing include the figure of Blind Justice outside the courtroom where Bosch's fatal shooting of a killer is being dissected and also Bosch's nemesis, trial lawyer Honey (Money) Chandler. In fact the book is littered with fair h...more

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Aug 20, 2011 Jane Stewart rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: crime-mystery

2 ½ stars for the first half - too much of a victim feel. 4 stars for last half - it was very good. I’m glad I read it.

STORY BRIEF:
Four years earlier, a victim escaped from serial killer Church and called the police. Bosch took the call. He feared the killer might have another victim so there was no time to get backup. Bosch went to the room, told Church to freeze, but Church did not comply. He moved to get something under a pillow so Bosch shot and killed him. Bosch then discovered Church was g...more 2 ½ stars for the first half - too much of a victim feel. 4 stars for last half - it was very good. I’m glad I read it.

STORY BRIEF:
Four years earlier, a victim escaped from serial killer Church and called the police. Bosch took the call. He feared the killer might have another victim so there was no time to get backup. Bosch went to the room, told Church to freeze, but Church did not comply. He moved to get something under a pillow so Bosch shot and killed him. Bosch then discovered Church was going for his toupee, not a gun.

Church’s widow is now suing the city claiming Bosch killed an innocent man. Maybe a third of the book covers the trial. Details of the serial killer and his victims are told to the reader through trial testimony. Chandler is the very smart and competent attorney for Church’s widow. Bosch’s attorney Belk is less experienced and not very good. Belk is on the city payroll and Bosch had no choice in selecting Belk.

As the book begins, a blonde dead woman is found buried in concrete. It was done the same way Church’s victims were killed, but this woman was killed after Church’s death. So Bosch is now trying to catch the copycat killer. This hurts Bosch’s defense in the trial because Chandler is claiming there was only one killer who is still alive and that Bosch killed an innocent man.

REVIEWER’S OPINION:
The first half of the book goes back and forth between the trial (telling about the past – not showing) and Bosch’s current investigation of the copycat killer. When I was halfway through the book I felt it was interesting but I wasn’t enjoying it. I didn’t enjoy watching the judge and Chandler being so negative against Bosch and trying to influence the jury erroneously and unfairly against Bosch. I was mad at things Chandler said about Bosch. He was a hero in my mind (the way he killed Church), yet Chandler made him sound like a rogue bad guy cop. However I may be reacting too strongly here by faulting the author for making me angry at the bad guys. Stories need bad guys to pit against the good guys, but I didn’t like the helpless victim feel.

Then my reaction changed. The last half was really good. I loved the things Bosch did when he finally caught the copycat killer. Some readers don’t want to be able to guess who the bad guy is. For you I think this will satisfy because I sure didn’t guess. But I don’t mind if I can guess or not. I care more about being surprised by thinking and actions which is what this author does well.

THE SERIES & MYSTERIES:
There are at least 17 books in the Harry Bosch series. So far I’ve read books 1,2,3, and 5. They can all be read as stand-alones, but there is a flow. I prefer reading them in order. Secondary characters are introduced in early books and continue in later books. So far, as soon as I finish one book, I’m eager to get to the next. These are “police procedural” mystery solving. They are better than most other mysteries I’ve read. Too many authors just slowly unravel clues until all is shown at the end. – almost with a formulaic feeling that I don’t like. I’m much more emotionally engaged and pulled into these stories. This author is making me “like mysteries” more than I have in the past. One reason is that Bosch is so smart and his actions surprise me.

NARRATOR:
The narrator Dick Hill was very good. I had problems with the voice he used for women in earlier books, but his female voices in this book were fine.

DATA:
Unabridged audiobook length: 13 hrs and 57 mins. Narrator: Dick Hill. Swearing language: strong. Sexual language: none. Number of sex scenes: three, told not shown. Setting: 1993 Los Angeles, California. Book Copyright: 1994. Genre: crime mystery. Ending: It’s a feel good ending. The good guys win.(less)

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Jun 15, 2011 Manugw rated it 4 of 5 stars

MR CONNELLY HELPED HARRY BOTCH AND BOTH MADE IT TOGETHER

A rich top notch gripping thriller, this book is the ideal company for courtroom action and true crime mistery lovers looking for a good read. This my third Connelly book after The Black Echo and The Black Ice, (I recommend to read them in this order) and Mr Connelly, has again as in the others, developed his unique skills too create fast paced action packed suspense and to easily manipulate the reader the way he wants providing also a thor...more

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Jan 15, 2011 Nikki rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: fiction, mysteries, books-set-in-california

Originally I was planning to read the Harry Bosch series in order, but my excursion into audiobooks spoiled that plan. Also, my local library didn't have this particular book until recently and life was too busy for interloan. However, just last month they acquired a large print version -- whoopee! I had to do some mental readjusting to get back to where Bosch was in his life just after the events in Black Ice. Some characters who show up in later books seemed to have quite different personaliti...more Originally I was planning to read the Harry Bosch series in order, but my excursion into audiobooks spoiled that plan. Also, my local library didn't have this particular book until recently and life was too busy for interloan. However, just last month they acquired a large print version -- whoopee! I had to do some mental readjusting to get back to where Bosch was in his life just after the events in Black Ice. Some characters who show up in later books seemed to have quite different personalities in this one. But I'm glad I read it.

As the book opens, Harry Bosch is attending a trial -- the widow of The Dollmaker, a notorious serial killer whom Bosch shot and killed a few years before, is suing the LAPD for wrongful death. Part of her case is that she doesn't believe her husband was the killer, even though evidence found in his secret apartment pointed to him. The widow also has a better lawyer than Harry does. When Harry's boss calls to have him view a newly-discovered body that was buried in concrete, complications arise because the "new" corpse has all the indications of being The Dollmaker's handiwork, but is also too recent to be so. Harry and others in the department must figure out whether he indeed shot the wrong man or whether there are really two "Dollmakers," one still at large. As usual, Bosch breaks a lot of rules, makes some false starts, and eventually gets his man, in a way. In addition, we learn a lot more about Bosch's early life and follow the ups and downs of his relationship with Sylvia Moore, the widow of the police officer whose apparent suicide began Black Ice.

I'm getting pretty darn tired of serial killers in these stories, but the writing is so good I can't resist reading them even when that's the topic. I suppose serial killers are so popular in police procedurals because they are one of the few realistic instances where the police are initially baffled but have some chance of figuring out whodunnit (unlike random gang violence, for example.) So, I'll be reading the rest of the Harry Bosch series, but I really prefer the Mickey Haller books by the same author.(less)

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Jul 04, 2010 Jerry rated it 5 of 5 stars

Early Bosch/Connelly tale shows off great skill of author in fine suspense thriller!

We have been catching up on this interesting author's mystery thriller booklist, about half of which comprise LAPD homicide cop Harry Bosch novels. Connelly has a knack for writing suspenseful tales which usually take quite a few turns before being resolved. Much of the tension arises from Bosch's intellectual yet irascible and persistent pursuit of the real perpetrator - Harry is tough to satisfy as he discards...more

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Oct 13, 2009 Jen rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: mystery-crime-detective, thrillers

Okay. I read this book months ago, but I'm going to do my best. The Concrete Blonde by Michael Connelly is a book in his series of mysteries about Detective Harry Bosch. I picked this up because an author I adore recommended it as one of her favorite mystery series, and this her favorite of the series. I am a mystery lover, so I immediately put it on the to-read list.

The premise is that Harry was on a case a long time ago - something like 9 years ago - that was a serial killer case. And he shot...more Okay. I read this book months ago, but I'm going to do my best. The Concrete Blonde by Michael Connelly is a book in his series of mysteries about Detective Harry Bosch. I picked this up because an author I adore recommended it as one of her favorite mystery series, and this her favorite of the series. I am a mystery lover, so I immediately put it on the to-read list.

The premise is that Harry was on a case a long time ago - something like 9 years ago - that was a serial killer case. And he shot and killed a guy who he had good reason to believe was the killer in a situation where he thought the guy was reaching for a gun. Turns out he was reaching for a toupee, but Harry didn't know that until after he had shot him. After the kill, though, all evidence pointed to the fact that he still shot the right guy - the scary Dollmaker serial killer. The guy's family, however, has now brought a civil suit against him for wrongful death. Meanwhile, bodies have started turning up again bearing the marks of the Dollmaker killings. Harry is caught in a courtroom drama combined with a fear that maybe he did somehow, despite the evidence, get the wrong guy and the Dollmaker is really still out there.

Sounds exciting. Didn't really grab me. There are a lot of fans of this series - a LOT - and I am no stranger to the mass market paperback series in the mystery section. I kinda like a lot of them. But this one...was fine. It wasn't bad, but I never bonded with the main character. I was also driven nearly insane by Connelly's habit of "recycling" famous people's names in his characters - something that I'm sure fans find cute, but Heironymous Bosch is already a famous, real-life 15th century Dutch painter. He doesn't also need to be a fictional LA cop in Connelly's books. John Locke also makes an appearance as a fictional psychologist specializing in serial killers and sex crimes. I prefer the real John Locke, the philosopher. And every time I read these names, I was jolted out of the story in annoyance.

I wouldn't discourage anyone from reading this book. The story is well-written and well-crafted; it had me guessing as to whodunnit until near the big reveal. I just...did not identify with Bosch. And have no desire to read more about his life. Maybe that's just a thing with me, but them's my two cents.(less)

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Jul 17, 2012 Howard rated it 5 of 5 stars

I have read every book Michael Connelly has written, at least I thought I had. That was until I read the synopsis for The Concrete Blonde, I knew of the book, even thought I had read it but the blurb just didnt click. It rang no bells in my head, nothing. The excitement was overwhelming, could it really be? A Bosch book I havent read? Not only that but classic early 90's Bosch. Well it was, and man was I happy, but sadly it revealed some unpalatable but starkly outlined truths to me. Since havin...more I have read every book Michael Connelly has written, at least I thought I had. That was until I read the synopsis for The Concrete Blonde, I knew of the book, even thought I had read it but the blurb just didnt click. It rang no bells in my head, nothing. The excitement was overwhelming, could it really be? A Bosch book I havent read? Not only that but classic early 90's Bosch. Well it was, and man was I happy, but sadly it revealed some unpalatable but starkly outlined truths to me. Since having recently read The Drop and now comparing this early work to it I realise that Bosch has mellowed in his old age. He is a man out of time in 2011/2012, he doesnt break the rules like he used to. He doesnt smoke, he doesnt drive after having one too many drinks, he doesnt give a dirtbag a slap if he needs to anymore. Ok for the real world thats great but for the LAPD? Reading The Concrete Blonde has made me realise this and I miss the old Bosch. Even though this is heavily courtroom based, not my favourite style of Connelly's work, Bosch still kicks ass. I have suspected it for a while but as Michael Connelly has got older, living for so long in Florida and away from the dirt and traffic and smog of LA he himself has mellowed and he has taken Bosch with him. The stories from the old days are better thought out, more expertly and tightly woven and suspenseful, at points I could feel my heart rate increasing. They actually kept you guessing right to the end. All intermingled with Bosch butting heads with whoever got in his way. You know what? Even the titles of the books used to be cleverer. Compare The Drop (a simple reference to Deferred Retirement Option Plan) to The Concrete Blonde (a reference to both lady justice statue on the courthouse and the body of a blonde entombed in concrete). Mr Connelly please move back to LA, to the filth and the smog, to the traffic and the scumbags of Hollywood, but most of all back to Bosch, let his last days before retirement be glory days, Harry Bosch deserves to go out on a high.(less)

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Oct 13, 2009 AJ rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: mystery-detective

This is the 3rd Harry Bosch novel I've read and to be honest I probably wouldn't have made it this far in the series except for the fact that I had bought the 3 book collection for Kindle.

There is something I really dislike about a main character whose name I can't pronounce. And Bosch (is it like Box or Botch or what?) had a name that I couldn't hear others saying. So it took some of the love of the novels away from me - especially b/c I think part of this book's strong suit is the conversatio...more

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Aug 13, 2009 Ollie rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: L.A. residents, serial killers and street hoes

Recommended to Ollie by: C.J. Lines recommended the author, years ago

This is the third in Hieronymus "Harry" Bosch's crime novels (which don't necessarily need to be read in order), set in a gritty Los Angeles barely recovered from the Rodney King riots. Harry is on trial for the unlawful shooting of the Dollmaker, a serial killer known for strangling prostitutes and then garishly painting their faces with their own makeup. But as the trial begins and Harry finds himself facing L.A.'s toughest lawyer, Honey "Money" Chandler, a note arrives at the police precinct...more

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Dec 13, 2011 Aaron rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Let's see if I can do this without spoiling anything.

What really made this novel work for me, what separated it from the other two Harry Bosch novels I have read, what made it my favorite one so far, what made me concede that this is a five-star work of art (not in general, but for the genre) is the clever game that Mr. Connelly plays with the identity of the killer.

I won't give any names, but don't read further if you don't want any hints!!!

The first seventy percent of the book is spent trying...more

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Jul 02, 2011 Devon rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: favorites

A shooting leaves an unarmed suspect dead and our protagonist Harry Bosch is the man who's pulled the trigger. As expected, the evidence tells Bosch that the man is The Dollmaker, an infamous serial killer who has been stalking the city of Los Angeles. Whether the victim is the killer in question or not, Bosch finds himself on trial for using excessive force. To make matters worse, a body has turned up buried in a block of concrete with the Dollmaker's name written all over it. Has the serial ki...more A shooting leaves an unarmed suspect dead and our protagonist Harry Bosch is the man who's pulled the trigger. As expected, the evidence tells Bosch that the man is The Dollmaker, an infamous serial killer who has been stalking the city of Los Angeles. Whether the victim is the killer in question or not, Bosch finds himself on trial for using excessive force. To make matters worse, a body has turned up buried in a block of concrete with the Dollmaker's name written all over it. Has the serial killer risen from the dead? Or did Bosch kill the wrong man?

This is the third book in the stellar Harry Bosch series, but don't think twice about reading it first. Not only is it the best of the first ten books, it's a perfect hook into the character of Harry Bosch (and once you're hooked you'll be hooked until the last book.) The Concrete Blonde manages to be an interesting crime novel, a deep character study, and an intense court drama all at once. This has got to be one of the most balanced books I have ever read. You got everything here, romance, drama, action, suspense ... the list goes on. Connelly is a masterful writer, it doesn't matter what's going on, he paints the picture beautifully. There's very few authors that can do it all like Connelly can.

The difference here I think from the first two books, is that Connelly makes us care about Bosch and like him a lot more then before. In The Black Echo and The Black Ice, there are points were Bosch will piss you off or offend you. He may just annoy you and make you want to put the book down for a little bit. In The Concrete Blonde, we get some insight on why he is the way he is, (though not as much insight as we're given in the next book, The Last Coyote) and that definitely helps toward making Bosch a more likeable character. Some may be turned off by this, after all, Bosch's rude, unlikeable behavior makes him the great character that he is, but it's important to understand that Connelly didn't change Bosch, he just shows the character in a different light. We're seeing the beginning of a very dynamic, real character here in The Concrete Blonde.

Pros:
- Harry Bosch evolves into an excellent, likeable character
- Interesting, unpredictable plot
- Excellent pacing
- A perfect balance of Drama, Action & Romance

Cons:
- There's nothing bad about this novel.(less)

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Jun 24, 2012 Carly rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: detective-noir, mystery, police-procedural

Wow. Just wow.
The story centers around a previous case of Bosch's, the one which got him booted out of the elite homicide squad and into Hollywood. Bosch was on the case of the Dollmaker, a serial killer who hunted, raped, and murdered prostitutes, then dehumanized them by painting their faces with makeup. Bosch shot and killed a man who he thought was resisting arrest and reaching for a gun. Evidence that this man was the serial killer was subsequently discovered--as was the fact that the man's...more Wow. Just wow.
The story centers around a previous case of Bosch's, the one which got him booted out of the elite homicide squad and into Hollywood. Bosch was on the case of the Dollmaker, a serial killer who hunted, raped, and murdered prostitutes, then dehumanized them by painting their faces with makeup. Bosch shot and killed a man who he thought was resisting arrest and reaching for a gun. Evidence that this man was the serial killer was subsequently discovered--as was the fact that the man's object when disobeying police orders, far from a gun, was his toupee. Years later, the man's widow is now suing Bosch. At the same time, evidence is emerging that either the Dollmaker had a copycat or Bosch killed the wrong man. Alternating between being interrogated in court for his past actions and searching for this new appearance of the killer, Bosch is forced to consider whether his violence is justified or whether hunting the monsters has so warped his viewpoint that all he can see is the monster in those around him. As the prosecutor asks, "If the system turns away from the abuses inflicted on the guilty, then who can be next but the innocents?" During the story, one of the characters quotes Nietzche: “He who fights with monsters might take care lest he thereby become a monster. And if you gaze for long into an abyss, the abyss gazes also into you.” All of the stories in the series have explored this theme. What makes the internal investigations officer become an instrument of corruption? How does the drug task force cop become a dealer? Why does the Ad Vice cop become the sexual predator he is supposed to hunt? In this book, Bosch is confronted with how easy it is to fall into darkness--how easy it is for a man who hunts monsters to become one. It is a poignant and powerful story and leaves one with questions far after the last page is reached.

The book also explicitly deals with society's treatment of women. It points out the way the prostitutes are dehumanized, even how names like "the Dollmaker" infantilize and dehumanize the victims. Connelly points out how anger at women in power always seems to fall into sexual insults. They are called bitches and whores, and the men they dominate intellectually tell themselves and others that they gained the power by "f*cking a man in power". The book discusses how rape, how reducing women to sexual objects, is about humiliation and dominance. Yet throughout the series, Bosch and Connelly themselves are complicit in using sexually charged, female-humiliating language. I can't decide if it is intentional or not, but it certainly got me to thinking about how often the language for humiliation is the language of rape. For example, IAD officials who go after a detective have a "hard-on" for him, a phrase I have found repulsive and distasteful in previous books. Bosch declares that (emphasis mine) "we're going to nail this son of a bitch." (Ever hear anyone use the phrase, "son of a womanizer"?) Another conversation: "'You f*ck!...I'm in that courtroom getting f*cked in the ass and I find out you're the guy'...'I'm sorry. She screwed me too. It was like blackmail. I couldn't--I tried to get out of it but she had me by the shorthairs.'" The language of rape here is so explicit, so repetitive, that it made me realize how common this language is in our culture, especially in male-dominated fields. I didn't even realize how often I use them.

The book's focus is on ethics rather than action, but the prose still has the tight journalistic style that makes it a fast and easy read. I like this style, although it leaves some of the characterization very sparse; for example, after three books of the character, I still don't know whether "98" Pound's nickname was given sarcastically. Connelly's dialogue is still a little problematic: although more natural than in the first book, all characters have very similar voices and use similar intonation and expression. Oddly, for a book that so clearly "gets it" in terms of rape and rape language, the book's predominantly male cast is rather disappointing. For a story dealing with the theme of humiliation of women, dominance of women, confinement of women, there are very few women in the story; only two of any significance: the cold, clinical, and extremely successful lawyer, Honey Chandler, and Harry's gentle, damsel-in-distress style girlfriend, Sylvia. But for all these minor defects, the questions asked are troubling and relevant. To hunt the monsters, must one become one? Has Bosch crossed that invisible line that divides the monsters from the heroes? Does the line even exist?

This book also comes at the right time in the series. At this point, after two books seeing him in action, seeing him both cruel and kind, I like Bosch. I empathize with him. But now we see Bosch on the defensive, hammered (see, the language so automatic that I'm doing it) by a defence attorney who links his own troubled past, including the murder of his mother, to his own actions. Like Bosch himself, I began to wonder where the line can be drawn between the monster and the man who hunts them. There's this really powerful, sickening moment where Bosch, confronted with his own actions and his own reactions, is unashamed and says the man got what was coming to him. Like me, the jury is sickened. And Bosch simply doesn't understand why they have this reaction. Bosch's agony is twofold. Even if the man Bosch killed was guilty, he was not given the opportunity to face justice. As the attorney says, "You say he deserved what he got. When were you appointed judge, jury, and executioner?" Bosch believes in justice, but he doesn't even trust the system that he is a pert of. He makes his own deals, hands out his own sentences. It's a troubling moral question. What happens when the system is broken? But how can we have a world when each person executes their own justice? I think I tend to love books which ask who watches the watchers. It's a question we deal with every day as we fight against the traits we fear and hate in ourselves. To echo Nietzche again, “Is it better to out-monster the monster or to be quietly devoured?”

It's a book full of questions with no easy answers. In the end, Bosch discovers that "Nobody in this world is who they say they are, nobody. Not when they're in their own room with the door shut and locked. The best you can hope for is to know yourself. And sometimes, when you see your true self, you have to turn away." Altogether, a powerful, powerful story.(less)

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Jan 26, 2012 Connie rated it 5 of 5 stars

THE CONCRETE BLONDE by Michael Connelly is 512 pages in paperback form. This is #3 in the Harry Bosch Novels.

Brief Description:

THEY CALLED HIM THE DOLLMAKER...

The serial killer who stalked Los Angeles and left a grisly calling card on the faces of his female victims. With a single faultless shot, Detective Harry Bosch thought he had ended the city's nightmare.

Now, the dead man's widow is suing Harry and the LAPD for killing the wrong man - an accusation that rings terrifyingly true when a new vi...more THE CONCRETE BLONDE by Michael Connelly is 512 pages in paperback form. This is #3 in the Harry Bosch Novels.

Brief Description:

THEY CALLED HIM THE DOLLMAKER...

The serial killer who stalked Los Angeles and left a grisly calling card on the faces of his female victims. With a single faultless shot, Detective Harry Bosch thought he had ended the city's nightmare.

Now, the dead man's widow is suing Harry and the LAPD for killing the wrong man - an accusation that rings terrifyingly true when a new victim is discovered with the Dollmaker's macabre signature.

Now, for the second time, Harry must hunt down a death dealer who is very much alive, before he strikes again. It's a blood-tracked quest that will take Harry from the hard edges of the L.A. night to the last place he ever wanted to go - the darkness of his own heart.

I loved this book. It was very fast paced and Harry was very human in this one. His career was sinking fast because of the civil suit against him and that was one of the stories.

Another of the stories was his relationship with his girl friend and how fragile that is because of Harry and his past and the job he does every day. This seemed to be very real to me. It seemed like this part came from personal experience and not just writing the words to make a good story.

There is the quest to find the killer or to ascertain if there were two different killers, one that was a copy cat and taking risks by letting Harry know he hadn't really collared the right guy.

I loved the way the evidence stacked up against the suspects and could see how each one of them could have been the killer. This story had a lot of different angles that it took you on, but the ride was very thrilling. I felt the suspense coming off the book.

I read this book on my kindle because I had purchased the 3 pack of books from Amazon so I could read the entire series. At one time THE CONCRETE BLONDE was difficult to find. I am glad it came out in a new printing. This is a very entertaining series.

I am giving this 5 out of 5 stars and I look forward to reading the rest of the Harry Bosch books. I am sure they will just keep getting better and better.
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Jan 11, 2013 Dyana rated it 4 of 5 stars

In this #3 of the Detective Harry Bosch series, Harry is on trial and being sued by the widow of a serial murder suspect he killed four years back called the Dollmaker. Harry believed the Dollmaker, a.k.a. Norman Church, was reaching for a gun underneath a pillow but was actually reaching for his toupee. As the trial begins another body is discovered buried in concrete, hence the title of the book. This murder has all the earmarks of the Dollmaker, but this woman has only been dead two years. Di...more

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Jan 16, 2013 Mona rated it 4 of 5 stars

Detective Hieronymous "Harry" Bosch recently discovers a murder victim encased in concrete. There are signs that the serial killer called the Dollmaker was responsible. The problem is, several years ago, Det. Bosch already shot and killed him. Is it the same killer, or a new one? Harry Bosch is in big trouble - tough lawyer Honey "Money" Chandler is putting him through the wringer for possibly putting away the wrong man.

Michael Connelly creates a fascinating anti-hero in Harry Bosch. He can't st...more

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Feb 21, 2012 Cliff rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: novels

This is the third of Connelly's 'Harry Bosch' detective novels and the first I have read. It is an LA hard-boiled detective novel, a courtroom drama, a psychological thriller, a police procedural and a whodunnit all rolled into one. Each of these aspects is perfectly realised and seamlessly integrated into the whole work. The technical details are dealt with convincingly. One has the impression that the writer is either drawing on personal experience or has thoroughly researched the subject matt...more This is the third of Connelly's 'Harry Bosch' detective novels and the first I have read. It is an LA hard-boiled detective novel, a courtroom drama, a psychological thriller, a police procedural and a whodunnit all rolled into one. Each of these aspects is perfectly realised and seamlessly integrated into the whole work. The technical details are dealt with convincingly. One has the impression that the writer is either drawing on personal experience or has thoroughly researched the subject matter.

As the story begins Harry and the LA police department are being sued for damages in a civil action by the family of a man Harry has shot and killed, believing him to be a serial killer. A subsequent killing in the same pattern suggests that the man Harry killed was innocent. Thus he must solve the new crime as well as defend himself in court.

The character development of the protagonist and some of the minor characters is done in much greater depth than is normal in hard-boiled crime fiction. This involves a fair amount of melodrama as we follow Harry's psychological ups and downs. Normally I dislike melodrama in crime fiction because it is often a subterfuge to get the reader emotionally committed to following a character through a series and ends up with the book reading more like an episode in a soap opera than a genuine crime novel. In this case however the way in which the stresses of the job shape men's characters and actions is convincingly portrayed and adds to the strength and realism of the plot, and there are no emotional loose ends left at the end of the story.

It's a longish book but the suspense and twists and turns in the plot are maintained throughout. I prefer to read in smallish chunks so I can pause to reflect on the style and structure of the book but in this case the story was so compelling I read the last 150 pages straight.

I wouldn't say that there is any striking originality in the plot or that Connelly's dialogue or description of characters and places is particularly dazzling, but that is not a criticism. I'm told that J S Bach added nothing strikingly original to polyphonic music, but nevertheless brought the form to the peak of perfection. I have the sense that in this book, Connelly is similarly working through all the possibilities of the genre at the highest level.(less)

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Sep 26, 2011 Steve rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: crime-mys-suspense

In the first Harry Bosch novel, Harry had recently been demoted because his failure to follow procedures led to the death of a suspected serial murderer know as the Dollmaker. Now four years later, the suspect's wife has Harry in civil court. Just as the case is set to begin, Harry receives a note pointing him to the body of a woman that matches the Dollmaker's MO and casting doubt as to whether or not Harry killed an innocent man. Being a Law & Order fan, I liked the part courtroom drama /...more

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Dec 26, 2009 David rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: suspense-thriller-mystery

Like other reviewers, I enjoyed author Michael Connelly's writing in this third installment in the Harry Bosch series, and was engaged with the story more than I was with his first two Bosch installments.

But like others, I also found the protagonist difficult to like and the themes in this book disturbing. A more favorable spin would be to say that the book is provocative--since it wrestles with the moral ambiguities involved in the pursuit of justice.

Because of the moral ambiguities, I find r...more

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Oct 24, 2012 Steve rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2012, harry-bosch

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Aug 18, 2009 J B rated it 3 of 5 stars

The 3rd Harry Bosch action-mystery-thriller. This time the case that got him demoted comes back to bite him. The family of the serial killer he shot a couple of years ago is coming back to sue, claiming he was wrongfully killed. At the same time, killings have started again with all of the marks of the killer he thought he'd nailed two years ago. This was another OK book, but I'm kind of tired of them now, so I think I'll just stop here. I find these books to be too dark and dreary, and I'm star...more

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Jul 28, 2011 Brian rated it 4 of 5 stars

The Concrete Blonde is the 3rd installment in the Harry Bosch series. For those who haven't read the series yet Bosch is a hardnosed LAPD honicide dectective. In this book Bosch along with the LAPD are being sued by the widow of a man the Bosch killed in the line of duty. As the trial begins another body, along with a note, from the Dollmaker (The man Bosch killed) turns up. This, of course, sort of complicates things just a wee bit. How does a man who has been dead for four years drop off a not...more

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About Michael Connelly

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads' database with this name. See this thread for more information.

Michael Connelly decided to become a writer after discovering the books of Raymond Chandler while attending the University of Florida. Once he decided on this direction he chose a major in journalism and a minor in creative writing — a curriculum in which one of his teache...more Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads' database with this name. See this thread for more information.

Michael Connelly decided to become a writer after discovering the books of Raymond Chandler while attending the University of Florida. Once he decided on this direction he chose a major in journalism and a minor in creative writing — a curriculum in which one of his teachers was novelist Harry Crews.
After graduating in 1980, Connelly worked at newspapers in Daytona Beach and Fort Lauderdale, Florida, primarily specializing in the crime beat. In Fort Lauderdale he wrote about police and crime during the height of the murder and violence wave that rolled over South Florida during the so-called cocaine wars. In 1986, he and two other reporters spent several months interviewing survivors of a major airline crash. They wrote a magazine story on the crash and the survivors which was later short-listed for the Pulitzer Prize for feature writing. The magazine story also moved Connelly into the upper levels of journalism, landing him a job as a crime reporter for the Los Angeles Times, one of the largest papers in the country, and bringing him to the city of which his literary hero, Chandler, had written.
After three years on the crime beat in L.A., Connelly began writing his first novel to feature LAPD Detective Hieronymus Bosch. The novel, The Black Echo, based in part on a true crime that had occurred in Los Angeles, was published in 1992 and won the Edgar Award for Best First Novel by the Mystery Writers of America. Connelly has followed that up with 18 more novels.
Connelly's books have been translated in 35 languages and have won the Edgar Award, Anthony Award, Macavity Award, Los Angeles Times Best Mystery/Thriller Award, Shamus Award, Dilys Award, Nero Award, Barry Award, Audie Award, Ridley Award, Maltese Falcon Award (Japan), .38 Caliber Award (France), Grand Prix Award (France), and Premio Bancarella Award (Italy).
Michael was the President of the Mystery Writers of America organization in 2003 and 2004. In addition to his literary work, Michael was one of the creators, writers, and consulting producers of Level 9, a TV show about a task force fighting cyber crime, that ran on UPN in the Fall of 2000.
Michael lives with his family in Florida.

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The Brass Verdict (Harry Bosch, #14; Mickey Haller, #2)

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The Concrete Blonde (Harry Bosch #3)

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